Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) participated in the 61st session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, held from 23 February to 31 March 2026.
During this session, ADHRB delivered 12 oral interventions exposing human rights violations across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), particularly in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
Under Item 2, ADHRB addressed continued arbitrary arrests and torture in Bahrain, as well as the exclusion of political prisoners from royal pardons. Under Item 3, it covered ongoing arbitrary detention and torture in Bahrain, the denial of transitional justice to released political prisoners, children’s rights, the right to work, and the right to privacy. It also raised concerns over executions in Saudi Arabia for crimes committed during childhood, religious discrimination, failure to meet climate commitments related to the green transition, violations linked to development projects and migrant workers’ rights, and transnational repression. Under Item 4, ADHRB highlighted religious discrimination and violations related to development projects, and warned of threats to the lives of opposition leaders and human rights defenders.
Item 2
On 2 March 2026, ADHRB delivered an intervention during the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council under the General Debate of Item 2. It highlighted Bahrain’s continued detention of political prisoners despite royal pardons and conditional releases, stressing that opposition leaders and human rights defenders remain imprisoned under inhumane conditions, that political prisoners have been excluded from recent pardon decisions, and that arrests for peaceful expression are increasing. ADHRB called for the unconditional release of all political prisoners, an end to arbitrary arrests and torture, and full respect for the right to freedom of expression.
Item 3
ADHRB delivered eight interventions under Item 3: the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Torture, the Panel Discussion on Financing Sustainable Development and Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, the Annual Discussion on the Rights of the Child, the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Privacy, and three interventions during the General Debate.
On 3 March 2026, ADHRB delivered an intervention during the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on Torture, highlighting the torture and arbitrary detention of four Bahraini minors, as documented by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, including beatings, coerced confessions, unfair trials, and abusive detention conditions. It noted that two of these minors remain unjustly detained, while the others were released without compensation or rehabilitation, and called for accountability, an end to torture and ill-treatment, and full redress for the victims.
On 5 March 2026, ADHRB, together with other NGOs, delivered an intervention during the Panel Discussion on Financing Sustainable Development and Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, highlighting violations of the right to work and freedom of peaceful assembly in Bahrain. The intervention pointed to the worsening unemployment crisis since late 2025 and the authorities’ suppression of peaceful protests by unemployed citizens, including the detention of more than 20 individuals in a single day for exercising their constitutional rights. The organizations expressed concern over the repeated harassment and arrests of unemployed activist Mohamed Abdulla AlSankis and called on Bahrain to cease targeting individuals advocating for the right to work and to engage in meaningful dialogue to ensure sustainable and decent employment opportunities.
During the Annual Discussion on the Rights of the Child on 9 March 2026, ADHRB delivered an intervention highlighting ongoing violations against minors in Bahrain, including arbitrary detention, torture, unfair trials, denial of education, and retaliatory abuses. It called on the Council to urge Bahraini authorities to protect children from violations, ensure their access to lawyers and medical care, and respect their fundamental rights.
On 10 March 2026, ADHRB delivered an intervention during the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, highlighting the continued execution in Saudi Arabia of individuals for alleged acts committed when they were minors, and calling for an immediate halt to such practices and full compliance with international law prohibiting the execution of persons for crimes committed during childhood.
On 11 March 2026, during the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Privacy, NGOs, including ADHRB, delivered an intervention highlighting transnational repression targeting Saudi dissidents abroad through digital surveillance tools and spyware. They emphasized that such technologies pose a serious threat to the right to privacy and freedom of expression and called for stronger international accountability and strict controls on Saudi Arabia’s use of spyware to protect activists and dissidents, particularly those in exile.
As part of the General Debate under Item 3, ADHRB delivered three interventions on 10 and 12 March. On 10 March, ADHRB and other NGOs highlighted contradictions between Saudi Arabia’s official discourse on the green transition and its climate commitments, and the continued reliance on fossil fuels and rising emissions, calling for greater transparency and concrete steps to reduce emissions in line with global climate efforts.
On 12 March, ADHRB delivered an intervention, read by Bahraini human rights defender Ali AlHajee, highlighting violations against him and other human rights defenders in Bahrain, including arbitrary arrests, torture, and ongoing systematic persecution after release through restrictions and retaliatory measures such as re-arrest and dismissal from employment due to continued activism. ADHRB called on the Council to strengthen protections for human rights defenders, ensure they are not subjected to reprisals, release all political prisoners, and guarantee the restoration of their civil and economic rights.
ADHRB also delivered, jointly with other NGOs, an intervention highlighting the escalating repression of freedom of expression and peaceful assembly in Bahrain in the context of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. The intervention pointed to violent crackdowns and the detention of dozens of citizens expressing their views on the conflict, including minors, women, and elderly individuals with chronic illnesses, as well as concerns over unfair trials. It called on the Council to urge Bahrain to immediately and unconditionally release all detainees, drop all charges, end ongoing arrests, and adopt policies that respect diverse political views and end legal and social persecution of citizens.
Item 4
Under Item 4 of the Human Rights Council’s 61st session, ADHRB delivered three interventions during the General Debate on 17 March 2026.
In its intervention on 17 March 2026, ADHRB highlighted the ongoing and escalating religious persecution targeting the Shia community in Bahrain, particularly during religious occasions, through increasing restrictions on religious practices and the targeting of participants. It expressed concern over recurring patterns of repression, including the removal of religious symbols and the summoning and arrest of participants, and called on Bahraini authorities to end sectarian discrimination and uphold their obligations to protect freedom of religion and belief.
In a joint intervention with other civil society organizations, ADHRB highlighted the serious human rights impacts of large-scale construction projects in Saudi Arabia, including Vision 2030 initiatives such as NEOM and The Line, as well as preparations for hosting the 2034 World Cup, on workers’ rights and local communities. The intervention raised concerns about migrant workers’ conditions, violations linked to harsh working environments, and reports of forced evictions targeting local communities, and called on the Council to urge Saudi Arabia to halt forced evictions, protect workers’ rights, and ensure accountability and independent oversight.
ADHRB also delivered, together with other NGOs, another intervention under the General Debate of Item 4, issuing an urgent warning about the immediate threat to the lives of detained opposition leaders and human rights defenders in Bahrain. The organizations emphasized their prolonged arbitrary detention and deteriorating health due to medical neglect, noting that the ongoing military escalation and conflict in the region, including attacks targeting sites within Bahrain, further exacerbate their vulnerability and pose a real danger to their lives. They called for their immediate and unconditional release, as well as guarantees for their safety and access to urgent medical care.
Through its participation in the 61st session of the Human Rights Council, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) contributed to shedding light on serious and systematic human rights violations in the GCC, particularly in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
Its interventions addressed key issues, including continued arbitrary detention and torture in Bahrain, the exclusion of political prisoners from pardons and the denial of transitional justice to those released, and the suppression of freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. They also covered violations of labor rights and rising unemployment, systematic abuses against minors, including arbitrary detention and ill-treatment, and religious discrimination. The interventions further highlighted executions in Saudi Arabia for crimes committed during childhood, violations linked to major development projects and migrant workers’ rights, and Saudi Arabia’s failure to meet its climate commitments related to the green transition. They also addressed violations of the right to privacy through the use of surveillance and spyware tools in GCC countries, particularly Saudi Arabia, as well as transnational repression in the region.
ADHRB carefully documented the impact of these policies on the most vulnerable groups, including children, migrant workers, human rights defenders, political prisoners, opposition leaders, and religious communities, particularly in light of escalating violations and the deteriorating humanitarian and health conditions of detainees.
These interventions constitute an urgent call to the international community to take decisive steps to protect human rights, strengthen accountability and transparency, end ongoing violations, and ensure respect for fundamental freedoms, including freedom of expression, the protection of vulnerable groups, the pursuit of justice, and the strengthening of international mechanisms for the defense of human rights.
